Pin spot marker for bowling alleys



-May 3, 1949. W. WHITE PIN SPOT MARKER FOR BOWLING ALLE'YS INVENTOR.

Filed Feb. 3, 1948 Patented May 3,. 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PINSPDT MARKER FOR BOWLING ALLEYS William White, Newark, N. J. ApplicationFebruary 3, 1948, Serial'No. 5,916

Claims.

This invention relates to bowling alleys, and the invention hasreference, more particularly, to improvements in spot markers forbowling alleys.

The invention has for an object to provide a novel and simpleconstruction of pin spot device or marker which is adapted to indicatethe proper position of a given pin in its relation to the conventionalsymmetrical group of tenpins as stood upon an alley floor ready to bebowled against; the novel pin spot device or marker being relativelyhighly resistant to wear as oompared with the wood surface of the alley;and the novel pin spot device or marker being so constructed as to beself-binding against displacement from its operative relation to thealley oor, when countersunk and imbedded in the latter, and yet beingadapted to be not only easily and quickly mounted in the alley oor, butas easily and quickly released therefrom for adjustment, or removal andreplacement.

The invention has for another object to provide a novel and simple pinspot device or marker consisting of but two cooperative parts comprisinga radially expandible socket element and a central tapered expanderelement or core; said parts having cooperative screw-threaded means forcoupling the same in operative assembled relation.

The invention has for a further object to provide a pin spot device ormarker, of the character referred to, which is provided with an axialopening or passage through which a retractible pin positioning guideelement may be projected.

Other objects of this invention, not at this time more particularlyenumerated, will be understood from the following detailed descriptionof the same.

An illustrative embodiment of this invention is shown in theaccompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan View of the novel pin spot device or marker asoperatively imbedded in the door of a bowling alley; Fig. 2 is atransverse, vertical section, taken on line 2-2 in Fig. 1. but showingthe pin spot device or marker in elevation; Fig. 3 is a view similar tothat of Fig. 2, but showing the pin spot device or marker in transversevertical section; and Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view, taken on line4-4 in Fig. l.

Fig. 5 is a View similar to that shown in Fig. 3, but with the centraltapered expander element or core of the pin spot device or markerremoved from the expandible socket element thereof; and Fig. 6 is a planview, viewed downwardly from line 5 6 in Fig. 5.

Similar characters of reference are employed in the above describedviews, to indicate corresponding parts.

Referring to the drawings, the pin spot device or marker of thisinvention comprises a simple two-part structure provided by a radiallyexpandible socket element and a cooperative expander element or core.The socket element is formed by a body portion itl which is ofcylindrical external shape, and which is closed at its lower end by abottom wall I I. Said body II! is preferably, but not necessarily,provided at its upper end with an external, diametrically enlarged,annular head iiange I2. The body I0 is internally shaped to provide anupwardly open, downwardly and inwardly tapered, axial socket I3, whichterminates at the bottom wall I I. The side walls of the body I0,contiguous to the socket I3, are provided with a plurality ofcircumferentially spaced radial slits I4, thus dividing said side wallsinto a plurality of outwardly yieldable wall sections I5 which areadapted, under applied internal pressure or thrust, to be projectedradially, whereby to expand the socket element for purposes hereinafterexplained. The bottom'wall I I of the body IU is provided with anaxially aligned, internally screw-threaded opening I6.

The expander element or core comprises an inverted conical member orcore I'I, which is adapted to be entered into the socket I3 of thesocket element body lil. Said conical member or core Il is of somewhatless axial length than the axial depth of the socket I3 of said socketelement body I. Extending from the bottom end of the conical member orcore Il is an axially aligned, externally screw-threaded hub I8, whichis adapted to screw into the screw-threaded opening I6 with which thebottom wall II of the socket element body Il] is provided. The upper endportion of the conical member or core I'l is provided with a pair oflaterally spaced, outwardly open wrench sockets I9, so that a suitablespanner wrench (not shown) can be entered therein, and thus operativelyapplied to the conical member or core Il for turning the same.

The bowling alley, which is to be equipped with the novel pin spotdevice or marker of this invention, is bored to provide an upwardly openchamber 20 of a diameter to permit insertion therein of the socketelement body I0 of said pin spot device or marker. Ifthe socket elementbody is provided with the annular head flange I2, the upper end of saidchamber 2li is counterbored to provide an enlarged annular mouth portion2l for the reception of said head flange I2.r

To assemble the pin spot device or marker in affixed operative relationto the bowling alley, the socket element body III is entered within thechamber 20 and so disposed therein that its upper end will lie ush withthe bowling alley surface. If said body I l) is possessed of the headflange I2, the latter will be received in the mouth portion 2| which, insuch case, will be provided in connection with chamber 20; saidmouthportion 2| being of a depth equivalent to the height of said headflange, so that, when the latter is seated in said mouth portion, theupper end of the socket element body will be disposed flush with thebowling alley surface. After the :socket element body Ill is thusassembled with the bowling alley, the conical member or core II isentered 'in 'the vsocket I 3 of said body l 0, and the screw-threadedhub I8 of the former is opposed to the screw-threaded opening I6 of thebottom wall II of said body, ready to be turned down therethrough.

The conical member or core I I having been thus initially Yassembled-with the vsocket element body, a Spanner wrench is applied thereto toturn the same down finto the socket I3 of the latter, as downdrawn bythedescent of the screwthreaded hub I8 .in thescrew-threaded opening I6 ofthe vbottom II of said-'socket element body IIJ. As ythe conical memberor core I'I moves downwardly through the 'socket I3, with its taperedexternal-surface "in engagement with the internal tapered surface ofthelatten-said conical member or core will exert la Wedging outward thrustagainst the yieldablewall sections I5 of the body IfIl, whereby to urgevthe latter radially outward against the walls `of the alley chamber2l).` The conical member or core ls thus "turned down until its upperend become-s aligned vin `plane or flush with lthe upperend surface ofthe'body It. When Vthus positioned, 4the vconical member or bore 'I1exerts a ymaximum thrust upon said side wall sections rof the socketvelement body vII), whereby to set up an exceedinglyis'trong frictionalengagement thereof with the'walls of the alley chamber 20, and so as4lto strongly bind the pin spot device or marker tothe alley against.loosening or displacement. Notwithstanding such strongly boundlrelation 'of 'the pin -spot Vdevice or marker 'to the Ialley, the'former km'ay,\.nevertheless, be lvquickly :and `easily 'released forremoval and replacement-:crier adjustment, merely by withdrawing thevconical .member -or core I'I, and thereby relaxing the `wall v'sectionsI5 r.so that thefbody "I may 'be-easily .removed from thealley chamber20. This 'possibility `-is vof great advantage, y'especially'when 'it isdesired to dress or re-plane'th'e alley surface.

In Amany bowling alley installations, provision is'made 4for use ofretractibleplnpositioning'guide elements which are normally withdrawnbelow the surface of the alley, but `which can be `projected labove saidsurface vso as to Iserve as guides ina'd of accurately -registerln'gpinswith the spots or markers during the `operations of manually setting upsaid pins. 'The pin l'spot Idevice or marker of the instant inventionmaybe readily accommodated to .admit Jof 'the use of such pinpositioning guide element. 'rthis end, the conical member or Lcore I-'I.is provided with an axial `passage 2l through which :a pin positioningguideelement "23 (shown 'by'broken lines in certain of the figures o'i`the )accompanying drawings) may be projected and retracted. Preferablysuch passage l2-2 terminates fat its lower end in a llared mouth portion.24, whereby to assure entrance of kl'such `pin `pds'iticnln'g guideyelement 23 upwardly through the pin spot device or marker in properlyaligned axial relation thereto.

From the above, it will be obvious that the instant invention provides avery simple and easily mounted and dismounted pin spot device or markerfor bowling alleys. It will also be understood that various changescould be made in the detail construction of the above describedillustrative embodiment of the invention without departing from thescope of the here-following claims.

Having now described my invention, I claim: Y1. A pin spot device forbowling alleys comprising a socket element having an upwardly open,downwardly and .inwardly tapered socket bounded lby radially split sidewalls, and an inverted conical core within said socket having a screw-'threaded connection with the bottom of the socket element, wherebyrotation of the core in down moving direction relative .to the socketelement expands the split side walls of the latter into frictionallybound anchoring engagement with the walls of an opening in anV alleyprovided for the reception of said socket element.

2. A pin spot device for bowling alleys comprising a body adapted to becountersunkin an opening'in'the alley level with-the-surface of thelatter, said body having an upwardly open, `axially disposed 'anddownwardly `and inwardly tapered socket, said body having a bottom Walland radially split side walls bounding said socket, vthe bottom wallhaving an internally vscrew-threaded opening axially aligned 'with saidsocket, and an inverted Aconical core having a 'screw-threaded hub at.its lower end to 'screw into said screwthreaded opening so as to drawsaid core into said socket, and Vthereby expand the split side walls ofsaid body into frictionally bound anchoring engagement with the walls ofsaid alley opening.

3. A pin spot device for bowling alleys comprising a body adapted to becountersunk in an opening in the alley level with 'the surface of thelatter, said body having an upwardly open, axially disposed anddownwardly and inwardly tapered socket, said body having a bottom walland radially split side walls bounding said socket, the bottom wallhaving an internally screw-threaded opening axially aligned with saidsocket, an inverted conical core having a screw-threaded hub at itslower end `to screw into said screw-threaded opening so as to vdraw said.core into said socket, and thereby expand the split side walls of saidbody into frictionally bound anchoring engagement with the walls of saidalley opening, and said core lhaving a passage extending axiallytherethrough to accommodate a movable pin positioning guide element.

4. A -pin spot device for bowling alleys comprising an externallycylindrical body having an external annular head llange at its upperend, said body being adapted to be disposed in an opening in an alleywith its head ilange countersunk in a, counterbored portion of saidalley opening liush with the alley surface, said body having an upwardlyopen, axially disposed and downwardly and inwardly tapered socket, saidbody having a bottom wall vand radially split side walls bounding saidsocket, the bottom wall having an internally screw-threaded openingaxially aligned with said socket, 'and anA inverted conical core havinga screw-threaded vhub at its lower end to screw into said screw-threadedopening so as to draw said .core into said socket, and thereby expandthe split side walls of said body into 'frictionally bound anchoringengagement with the Walls of said alle'y opening.

5. A pin spot device for bowling alleys comprising an externallycylindrical body having an external annular head flange at its upperend, said Ibody being adapted to be disposed in an opening in an alleywith its head flange countersunk in a counterbored portion of said alleyopening ush with the alley surface, said body having an upwardly open,axially disposed and downwardly and inwardly tapered socket, said bodyhaving a bottom wall and radially split side Walls bounding said socket,the bottom Wall having an internally screw-threaded opening axially 10ment.

WILLIAM WHITE.

No references cited.

